Onion Of The Desert – Welwitschia Mirabilis

#Know_a_plant_series_02

#Onion_Of_Dessert

The world is a mysterious place with a lot of unknown things. This series is to undiscover some of such unknown plants. This time let us put some light on ‘Welwitschia Mirabilis’.

It’s not pretty to look at, but Namibia’s plant Welwitschia Mirabilis can truly claim to be one of a kind. There really is nothing like it. Welwitschia plant consists of only two leaves and a sturdy stem with roots. That’s all! Two leaves continue to grow until they resemble the shaggy mane of some sci-fi alien. The stem thickens, rather than gaining in height, and can grow to be almost 2 meters high and 8 meters wide. Their estimated lifespan is 400 to 1500 years and are considered to be plants of dianosour era. It can survive up to five years with no rain. The plant is said to be very tasty either raw or baked in hot ashes, and this is how it got its other name, Onyanga, which means onion of the desert. The ability to grow them in our home is an added advantage to this plant.

Hope this was useful to you. Next time we will meet you with yet again a different plant! Till then happy farming! Thank you!